TexasKayakFisherman.com

Just wanted to make a little rig page to keep track of and show what I am doing to my new (to me) Ascend 12t.
I picked it up used from a buddy for a really good price.
He already had the seat raised (which I will be redoing with aluminum bars), and he had the tracks on the side.
I will keep it updated as best I can and maybe throw some pics of catches if I pull some big girls

03/12/2019
I made a cool 4 rod holder in place of existing flushing mount holders. Got the idea from a picture on pinterest except instead of a holder in the center it has a place for safety flag (day) or lighted pole (night)
All made from 1 1/2 PVC. Ends of holders were flared out with heat gun and beer bottle.
The ends sticking out is where a board of some sort (havent figured out a good material yet) to mount my trolling motor. I have it already wired and ready all under the middle hatch.

03/14/2019
Made a simple sit on cart for easy carry.
Used all 3/4 PVC and some 10" all purpose wheels.
It fits perfectly in the rear compartment and is super light. Kayak rest on it without sliding around bc of foam padding (pool noodle)

03/09/2019
Guess I should of started with this one
No picture yet but will add Sunday when I get it on water.
I have a Humminbird Helix 5 DI mounted on center hatch but have a gear track mount coming for better placement.
Transducer is mounted on gear track swing arm.
First time out it was getting a better signal and temp reading then my buddy's with hobies and lowrance hook 5x. So far this fish finder is amazing I just wish I had put the extra 50 out and got the one with GPS for maps and waypoints.

good work - guess you know with a trolling motor, you'll have to get a TXPD registration and hull number
Definitely want to see your dashboard photo when you get there

Sounds like you're going to keep your battery in the center hatch? When I had my Ascend 12T I kept my (54 lb.) battery in the rear tank well right behind the seat leaving plenty of room for my tackle storage further back in the rear tank well. I also had my plug in connection where I plugged my battery in located in the rear tank well. I would get about 2" of water in the rear tank well with nothing else back there but the battery. With quality scupper plugs you can avoid this as long as no water comes into the kayak while fishing. The rear tank well may not be the best place for a battery unless it's a lithium ion or one that doesn't weigh much.

Looking good.

It's been awhile since I opened the center hatch of the Ascend, but is there enough height to accommodate the battery? I don't remember there being much room.

So far trolling motor is going to wait. I did the mounts for it with motor in mind. I have a small 8amp marine battery in the center hatch. Just enough to power the fish finder. I also have a small solar panel on the front to keep a steady charge on the battery.

I will be adding some deck lights and light bar on the front too for night catfishing, so hopefully the small battery will be enough. Obviously I will find that out once the time comes Haha. Still too cold here to worry about night fishing.

Neumie wrote:Looking good.

It's been awhile since I opened the center hatch of the Ascend, but is there enough height to accommodate the battery? I don't remember there being much room.

I wouldn't think so. Maybe if you layed it on it's side but I think it would be tight for sure. I sold mine about 9 months ago but seems like I could lay 2 3600 boxes on top of each other but that's not much room for a trolling motor battery.

Neumie wrote:Looking good.

It's been awhile since I opened the center hatch of the Ascend, but is there enough height to accommodate the battery? I don't remember there being much room.

There is definitely not enough room for a full size, hell even a mid size battery. I have about 1-2 inch of clearance with the little 8 amp battery. I think I'm going to move it to the back in a water tight container today and run the wires through the hull just for a cleaner look up front.

Got the battery in sealed box and located just behind the seat. Ran all wires through the hull and just used some rubber grommets with silicone. Moved transducer arm to back of yak. And got my yakattack finder mount in the mail so that went on today.

Also threw on a little solar panel to hold a charge on the little battery just in case I'm out longer then expected.

Weather was great today so got to get her out.
Heres all the gear in place and ready to roll
Managed to catch 1 fish, the bite was slow. Nice size trout tho hit on a big lipless crank.

great photos and clear water - where were you fishing?

Ron Mc wrote:great photos and clear water - where were you fishing?

Just my local lake.
Pueblo Reservoir. Water temps are still pretty low, 40-41.
They had gill nets out for the walleye spawn so we were trying our luck but they just werent biting haha

Decided to fix up the seat.
As you can see in previous pictures it was just duct taped and zip tied to a couple 1x1 boards. (Previous owner)
Thought to myself probably not the best having wood on there with long term water contact.

So I used 1/8th by 1 aluminum angle.
Bolted seat to it with eyelit bolts for gear attachments.
Made some locking bolts on previous seat track for a "locked in" seat.